Though the cartridge served in two world wars, it wasn’t until November 22, 1963 it became famous for the wrong reason — as the round used by Lee Harvey Oswald to assassinate President John F. Kennedy. GUNS Magazine even had it on the cover of the May 1967 issue.
In junior high at the time, it struck me as an odd caliber choice for an assassin in a country that produced the .30-30 Winchester and .30-06 Springfield. I also had a neighbor who kept a rifle chambered for it in his car’s trunk on the principle that if a need ever arose, he’d have something at the ready, but if it ever disappeared, he wasn’t out much of a gun.
New Steinel 6.5x52 Carcano
Cartridges for a classic
There’s something inherently charming about classic rifle cartridges long-eclipsed by modern developments in ammunition, such as .30/40 Krag, .250/3000 Savage, 6.5×55 Swedish Mauser and even the .300 Savage — the latter of which was once declared in print to be a caliber worthy of only the scrap heap.
Dating back to 1891, the 6.5×52 Carcano is another such cartridge, and one that has racked up a fair amount of historical significance in the last 129 years.
Cartridge History
A rimless, bottle-necked rifle cartridge, the 6.5×52 Carcano was developed for Italian infantry chambered in the M-91 rifle. Typically loaded with a 162-gr. round nose projectile, it was the first 6.5mm bullet in military service, though the bullet diameter measured closer to 6.7mm. However, it’s early aluminum nose often caused the bullet to tumble upon impact.
Enter Steinel Ammunition
While a fair number of firearms collectors own Carcano rifles, surplus rounds have been hard to find. Enter Steinel Ammunition. They started producing new 6.5×52 Carcano with a 160-gr. jacketed round nose and reported muzzle velocity of 1,770 fps from a 17.5″ barrel.
Today, the 6.5x52mm Carcano has use beyond surplus shooters. As a hunting round, it has the energy to conk a whitetail or coastal blacktail buck within 300 yards, as well as black bear, hogs and other similar-sized game within reason.
There’s no need for everyone to rush right out to find a rifle chambered for the round, but if you happen to have one tucked in a corner dad or grandpa might have owned, or find one on consignment at your local gun store, there’s no reason to let it gather dust.
Steinel offers its new 6.5x52mm Carcano ammunition in 20-round boxes. MSRP is $31.99.
For more info: www.steinelammo.com , Ph: (330) 840-7086
